Sean “Diddy” Combs arrested and charged with sex trafficking and racketeering – National
Sean “Diddy” Combs was due in court Tuesday on federal sex trafficking and racketeering charges that accuse him of beating and abusing women for more than a decade and presiding over a sex crimes empire.
The music mogul “engaged in a persistent and pervasive pattern of abuse toward women and other individuals,” according to an indictment unsealed Tuesday.
Detailing allegations dating back to 2009, the indictment accuses him of abusing, threatening and coercing women for years “to satisfy his sexual desires, protect his reputation and conceal his conduct.”
Combs was arrested Monday night in Manhattan, about six months after federal authorities began investigating sex trafficking. plundered his luxurious residences in Los Angeles and Miami.
Over the past year, Combs has been sued by multiple people who claim he subjected them to physical or sexual abuse. He has denied many of those allegations, and his attorney, Marc Agnifilo, said outside court Tuesday morning that Combs would plead not guilty and “fight like hell” to try to get his client released.
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Agnifilo said of Combs: “His morale is good. He’s confident.”
Marc Agnifilo, attorney for Sean “Diddy” Combs, center, speaks to members of the media upon his arrival at court in New York, U.S., Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024.
Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg via Getty Images
The indictment accuses Combs of repeatedly hitting, punching, dragging, throwing objects at and kicking women — and enlisting his personal assistants, security personnel and household staff to help him cover it up.
The indictment also describes Combs as the leader of a criminal enterprise that engaged in or attempted to engage in activities such as sex trafficking, forced labor, interstate transportation for the purpose of prostitution, drug crimes, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice.
Combs, 54, was recognized as one of hip-hop’s most influential figures before a wave of allegations that emerged over the past year turned him into an industry pariah.
In November, his former girlfriend, R&B singer Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, filed a complaint saying he beat and raped her For years, she accused Combs of coercing her and others into unwanted sex while using drugs.
The lawsuit was settled within a day, but a few months later, CNN released hotel security video showing Combs punching and kicking Cassie and throwing her to the ground. After the video aired, Combs apologized, saying, “I was disgusted when I did that.”
Combs and his lawyers, however, have denied similar allegations made by others in a series of lawsuits.
Douglas Wigdor, Cassie’s attorney, said in a statement Tuesday that “neither Ms. Ventura nor I have any comment.”
“We appreciate your understanding and if this changes we will certainly let you know,” he added.
One woman said Combs raped her 20 years ago, when she was 17. A music producer filed a lawsuit, claiming Combs forced him to have sex with prostitutes. Another woman, April Lampros, said Combs subjected her to “horrifying sexual encounters,” beginning with when she was a university student in 1994.
The AP generally does not name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they do so publicly, as Cassie and Lampros have done.
Combs, the founder of Bad Boy Records, has had legal trouble before.
In 2001, he was acquitted of charges related to a Manhattan nightclub shooting two years earlier that left three people injured. His then-protégé, Shyne, was convicted of assault and other charges and served about eight years in prison.
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Associated Press writer Andrew Dalton in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
© 2024 The Canadian Press
